Donating and recycling

I’m often surprised by the fact that I’ve been working to create and maintain order with my clients for the past 15 years. The ongoing process of organizing and reducing takes time, effort, and resources. Over the years I’ve discovered some great resources. Here are some that have helped me this fall.

Creating new habits

Use all your senses when creating new habits. Think about it. Speak about it. Write about it. Do it.

Example: Create new habit of putting things in their assigned spots when returning home from work.

  • Think about it = Where is the best assigned spot for my coat, purse, shoes, keys, sunglasses, work bag, lunch bag, mail, and anything else I brought home with me?
  • Speak about it = Ask for input from family and friends.
  • Write about it = Label where things go to reinforce new habit.
  • Do it = Practice everyday.

Trash don’t stash

Have you heard this phrase before, “Trash it don’t stash it!”? It’s great organizing advice that can be applied to both paper and stuff. However, please recycle instead of trash.

Here are three blogs that will help you do just that.

  1. Paper, what to keep and for how long
  2. 10 Things you can automatically get rid of
  3. 10 Not scary things to toss

 

Edit the excess

How much excess did you accumulate during the pandemic? Do you still have cupboards full of toilet paper, hand sanitizer, and disposable gloves? If so, consider donating your excess to a homeless shelter, food pantry, senior center, or animal shelter. Then take a long, hard, objective look at any other piles of excess products that are cluttering your home, and edit them. If you need suggestions on how to recycle them, email me.

Your organizing preference

The way we store, organize, manage, and retrieve stuff is unique to each individual. By paying attention to what works best for us, we realize our organizing preferences. Use these preferences to hone your organizing skills.

The image below is an example of 5 different ways to store sweaters. What is your preferred method? Is that the method that works best for you? If so, repeat this method with other stuff you need to store, organize, manage and retrieve. If it isn’t, test another method for effectiveness.